Affordable Housing Targets Niche Demographics

LOS ANGELES—As the calls for affordable housing ring louder and louder in Los Angeles, affordable housing developers are targeting niche demographics to create housing that truly serves the community. Developer Meta Housing and designer Studio One Eleven have delivered Ace 121 in Glendale, an affordable housing community that targets low-income artists in Glendale. While this is the first project of it’s kind, targeting niche demographics may become more common in affordable housing.

“Downtown Glendale has always had a little bit of an artist community, and it is one block West of our site,” Michael Bohn, senior principal and design director, Studio One Eleven, tells GlobeSt.com. “The city is trying to promote that as an artist district at the same time that new housing is going in and rents are going up. As a result, that arts district is struggling. Having a 70 unit affordable housing development with an artist preference is a perfect way of retaining artistic energy in that arts district.”